The Modern United States ~ Lesson 5 American Hostages in Iran
Iran is a country in the Middle East. It is rich in oil, yet the people are very poor.
Ahah Reza Pahlevi was the ruler of Iran for many years. He did a lot of good for the country, but he also placed people who opposed him in jail. Many people were killed by the Shah's men. In 1978 when riots broke out, the Shah and his men had to leave Iran.
Later a religious leader named Ayatollah Khomeni set up a new government based on Islamic religious law.
The United States had good relations with the Shah's government. When Khomeni took over, he said the United States had used this friendship to spy with plans to hurt Iran. On November 4, 1979, Iranians took over the American embassy in Tehran, the capital of Iran, taking 62 American hostages.
The Shah was in the United States being treated by doctors. The Khomeni government refused to release the prisoners until the United States sent the Shah back to be punished. The Shah did not want to cause problems for the United States, so he left the United States and went to Mexico. From there, he went on to Egypt where he died in 1980.
After many months, the Iranians offered to trade the hostages for all the Iranian funds in U.S. banks. The hostages were finally freed on January 21, 1981 after being held for over a year.
In anticipation of the takeover of the embassy, the Americans tried to burn classified documents. The furnace malfunctioned, so the staff used paper shredders. Here is an example of a reconstructed document.
Recently freed Americans held hostage by Iran disembark Freedom One, an Air Force VC-137 Stratoliner aircraft, upon their arrival at the base.